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Global Fine Wine Challenge
Team2023-09-28T05:01:59+00:00

Meet our Team

Meet our Team

International Judges

Wines entered are carefully selected by 5 of the most prominent and well known Wine Judges in the New World – and for the 2021 & 2022 seasons, wines were judged by 4 leading Masters of Wine. 2023 sees a semi-return to our pre-covid judging line-up with Huon Hooke (Australia) returning to the fold, alongside Jane Skilton MW (New Zealand), Toni Paterson MW and Anthony Mueller (America) from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. Our judges are:

Michael Fridjhon

South Africa

South Africa’s most highly regarded international wine judge, the country’s most widely consulted liquor industry authority, and one of South Africa’s leading wine writers. Michael also teaches and directs the Wine Judging Academy run in association with its Graduate School of Business.

Huon Hooke

Australia

One of Australia’s major wine writers and critics, Chair of the Vin de Champagne Awards, judge of the Australian Winemaker of the Year and a number of other major wine competitions. Huon tastes wines blind and writes for Decanter, Gourmet Traveller Wine, Sydney Morning Herald and occasionally The World of Fine Wine.

Christopher Waters

Canada

Christopher is the co-founder and editor of VINES Magazine and author of the weekly wine column, Waters & Wine. Christopher is head judge of the InterVin International Wine Awards and a WSET-certified instructor and Wine Appreciation Co-coordinator at the Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute.

Virginie Boone

USA

Virginie Boone reviews and writes about the wines of Napa and Sonoma for Wine Enthusiast Media and is a long-time resident of Sonoma County. She began her writing career with Lonely Planet travel guides, writing guides to the American South, South America, Northern California, and the Loire Valley, which eventually led to California-focused wine coverage for The Santa Rosa Press Democrat, Savor Magazine, Sonoma Magazine, and others. She is a regular speaker on wine topics in California and beyond.

Anthony Mueller

USA

Anthony Mueller is an experienced wine educator, wine judge and a rising star in the American beverage industry. He has mentored countless sommeliers to successfully pass top level wine exams and is in pursuit of sitting the MS & MW exams, with the aspiration to become the next Double Master (Master Sommelier & Master of Wine). Anthony’s current role finds him reviewing the great wines of the world for Robert Parkers Wine Advocate, where he specialises in the wines of Washington State and South Africa, whilst leading educational wine classes for consumers around the globe.

 

Jane Skilton MW

New Zealand

Jane began her wine career in London and completed the WSET Level 4 Diploma in Wines and Spirits in 1988, and the Master of Wine in 1993. In 2000 Jane and her family moved to New Zealand where she established the NZ School of Wines and Spirits, teaching WSET qualifications and general wine courses to trade and consumers. Jane is a Certified Educator and whilst most of her time is spent delivering wine courses around New Zealand, she travels internationally to teach too. Jane enjoys judging both national and international wine shows and has been a guest international judge in Rutherglen, Brisbane, Margaret River, Limestone Coast, Cowra, Hobart, Shanghai, Chengdu, Beijing, and London. She contributes to a number of wine publications both in New Zealand and overseas.

Toni Paterson MW

Master of Wine

Toni Paterson MW is one of Australia’s leading wine commentators. Paterson, at the age of 28, passed the rigorous Master of Wine (MW) examinations in 2001 on her first attempt and was awarded the prestigious Madame Lily Bollinger Medal for tasting excellence. Paterson has judged at many international and local wine shows including, but not limited to, the Decanter World Wine Awards, International Wine Challenge & International Wine and Spirit Competition.

Andrea Pritzker MW

Master of Wine

Andrea Pritzker is the founder of Wine inTuition a wine education & corporate events business in Sydney Australia. She is also an independent wine consultant, Certified Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) educator, writer and public speaker. Born and raised in Toronto, Canada, she obtained a diploma in Wine Commerce in Bordeaux, France, before moving to Sydney, Australia in 2003.

Andrew Caillard MW

Master of Wine

Andrew Caillard MW was born and educated in the UK. Worth School (1978). He is a wine marketing graduate of Roseworthy Agricultural College, South Australia (1984) and passed the Master of Wine examination (winning the prestigious Madame Bollinger Medal for excellence in wine tasting) in 1993. In 1989 he founded Langton’s Sydney and played a key role in establishing Langton’s as Australia’s leading wine auction house. Langton’s Classification of Australian Wine, now in it 8th edition, is regarded as the reference for wine collectors. Since 2009, Andrew has worked with Pinnacle Drinks a division of Endeavour Drinks Australia’s largest retail drinks group. His role as Fine Wine Principal involves sourcing, new product development and advisory work across the business.

International Judges

Wines entered are carefully selected by 5 of the most prominent and well known Wine Judges in the New World – and for the 2021 & 2022 seasons, wines were judged by 4 leading Masters of Wine. 2023 sees a semi-return to our pre-covid judging line-up with Michael Fridjhon (South Africa) and Huon Hooke (Australia) returning to the fold, alongside Jane Skilton MW (New Zealand) and Toni Paterson MW plus a US representative yet TBC. Our judges are:

Michael Fridjhon

South Africa

South Africa’s most highly regarded international wine judge, the country’s most widely consulted liquor industry authority, and one of South Africa’s leading wine writers. Michael also teaches and directs the Wine Judging Academy run in association with its Graduate School of Business.

Huon Hooke

Australia

One of Australia’s major wine writers and critics, Chair of the Vin de Champagne Awards, judge of the Australian Winemaker of the Year and a number of other major wine competitions. Huon tastes wines blind and writes for Decanter, Gourmet Traveller Wine, Sydney Morning Herald and occasionally The World of Fine Wine.

Christopher Waters

Canada

Christopher is the co-founder and editor of VINES Magazine and author of the weekly wine column, Waters & Wine. Christopher is head judge of the InterVin International Wine Awards and a WSET-certified instructor and Wine Appreciation Co-coordinator at the Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute.

Virginie Boone

USA

Virginie Boone reviews and writes about the wines of Napa and Sonoma for Wine Enthusiast Media and is a long-time resident of Sonoma County. She began her writing career with Lonely Planet travel guides, writing guides to the American South, South America, Northern California, and the Loire Valley, which eventually led to California-focused wine coverage for The Santa Rosa Press Democrat, Savor Magazine, Sonoma Magazine, and others. She is a regular speaker on wine topics in California and beyond.

Anthony Mueller

USA

Anthony Mueller is an experienced wine educator, wine judge and a rising star in the American beverage industry. He has mentored countless sommeliers to successfully pass top level wine exams and is in pursuit of sitting the MS & MW exams, with the aspiration to become the next Double Master (Master Sommelier & Master of Wine). Anthony’s current role finds him reviewing the great wines of the world for Robert Parkers Wine Advocate, where he specialises in the wines of Washington State and South Africa, whilst leading educational wine classes for consumers around the globe.

 

Jane Skilton MW

New Zealand

Jane began her wine career in London and completed the WSET Level 4 Diploma in Wines and Spirits in 1988, and the Master of Wine in 1993. In 2000 Jane and her family moved to New Zealand where she established the NZ School of Wines and Spirits, teaching WSET qualifications and general wine courses to trade and consumers. Jane is a Certified Educator and whilst most of her time is spent delivering wine courses around New Zealand, she travels internationally to teach too. Jane enjoys judging both national and international wine shows and has been a guest international judge in Rutherglen, Brisbane, Margaret River, Limestone Coast, Cowra, Hobart, Shanghai, Chengdu, Beijing, and London. She contributes to a number of wine publications both in New Zealand and overseas.

Toni Paterson MW

Master of Wine

Toni Paterson MW is one of Australia’s leading wine commentators. Paterson, at the age of 28, passed the rigorous Master of Wine (MW) examinations in 2001 on her first attempt and was awarded the prestigious Madame Lily Bollinger Medal for tasting excellence. Paterson has judged at many international and local wine shows including, but not limited to, the Decanter World Wine Awards, International Wine Challenge & International Wine and Spirit Competition.

Andrea Pritzker MW

Master of Wine

Andrea Pritzker is the founder of Wine inTuition a wine education & corporate events business in Sydney Australia. She is also an independent wine consultant, Certified Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) educator, writer and public speaker. Born and raised in Toronto, Canada, she obtained a diploma in Wine Commerce in Bordeaux, France, before moving to Sydney, Australia in 2003.

Andrew Caillard MW

Master of Wine

Andrew Caillard MW was born and educated in the UK. Worth School (1978). He is a wine marketing graduate of Roseworthy Agricultural College, South Australia (1984) and passed the Master of Wine examination (winning the prestigious Madame Bollinger Medal for excellence in wine tasting) in 1993. In 1989 he founded Langton’s Sydney and played a key role in establishing Langton’s as Australia’s leading wine auction house. Langton’s Classification of Australian Wine, now in it 8th edition, is regarded as the reference for wine collectors. Since 2009, Andrew has worked with Pinnacle Drinks a division of Endeavour Drinks Australia’s largest retail drinks group. His role as Fine Wine Principal involves sourcing, new product development and advisory work across the business.

Our Previous Judges

Our extended family of former judges include:

James Halliday

Australia

Jon Bonne

America

Bob Campbell

New Zealand

Robert Joseph

Neutral

Dan Berger

USA

Alison Eisermann MW

Master of Wine

Fabricio Portelli

Argentina

Terry Copeland

New Zealand – 2019

Eduardo Brethauer

Chile

Patrick Comiskey

USA

Sean Sullivan

USA

Our Previous Judges

Our extended family of former judges include:

James Halliday

Australia

Jon Bonne

America

Bob Campbell MW

New Zealand

Robert Joseph

Neutral

Dan Berger

USA

Alison Eisermann MW

Master of Wine

Alison is a Sydney based Master of Wine working primarily in wine education roles with WSET in Sydney and Hong Kong and the Institute of Masters of Wine. Alison has been a wine judge for over 25 years judging throughout Australia, the US and UK International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC) and as a Panel Chair for the past 12 years at the International Wine Challenge (IWC). Alison has travelled extensively through the worlds key wine regions.

Fabricio Portelli

Argentina

Terry Copeland

New Zealand – 2019

Eduardo Brethauer

Chile

Patrick Comiskey

USA

The Team behind the Challenge

We are blessed with an amazing team that work tirelessly to make this Challenge the huge success that it is.

Ross Anderson

Global Fine Wine Director

Ross to place his detailed information in here.

Tarryn Vincent

South African Management

Tarryn represents The Reciprocal Wine Trading Company – South Africa’s oldest specialist fine wine importer, which includes Riedel Glassware in the portfolio. Tarryn manages all logistics related to South African entries into the Global Fine Wine Challenge.

Anita Cole

Canadian Warehousing & Management

Anita Cole is the Office Manager for Bean Around the World Coffee’s in North Vancouver. Anita’s warehouse also acts as the collection point for all Canadian entries. The icing on this cake is that Anita is related to Challenge Director Ross
Anderson. Things get done!

Ash Reynolds

DrinkMe Digital Software Management & IT

Ash is the man behind the scenes, and is single handily responsible for building the world leading software and IT infrastructure (Drinkme Digital) that powers this Global Challenge.

Motti Lewis

South African Freight Management

Motti is Director of Aspiring Logistics / Cape Grape, based in Cape Town. Aspiring Logistics is South Africa’s leader in Wine and Art Logistics as well as climate controlled storage and exhibition services. Motti has worked alongside the Challenge since its earliest days and is a key figure in South African wine export and logistics services.

Alistair Dunn

Head Steward

Alistair is our Head Steward for both the Global Fine Wine Challenge and the Australian & New Zealand Boutique Wine Show. Alistair has been a part of the support team for almost 5 years now, and we don’t know what we’d do without him.

The Team Behind the Challenge

We are blessed with an amazing team that work tirelessly to make this Challenge the huge success that it is.

Ross Anderson

Global Fine Wine Director

Ross to place his detailed information in here.

Tarryn Vincent

South African Management

Tarryn represents The Reciprocal Wine Trading Company – South Africa’s oldest specialist fine wine importer, which includes Riedel Glassware in the portfolio. Tarryn manages all logistics related to South African entries into the Global Fine Wine Challenge.

Anita Cole

Canadian Warehousing & Management

Canadian Warehousing & Management

Canadian Warehousing & Management

Anita Cole is the Office Manager for Bean Around the World Coffee’s in North Vancouver. Anita’s warehouse also acts as the collection point for all Canadian entries. The icing on this cake is that Anita is related to Challenge Director Ross
Anderson. Things get done!

Ash Reynolds

DrinkMe Digital Software Management & IT

Ash is the man behind the scenes, and is single handily responsible for building the world leading software and IT infrastructure (Drinkme Digital) that powers this Global Challenge.

Motti Lewis

South African Freight Management

Motti is Director of Aspiring Logistics / Cape Grape, based in Cape Town. Aspiring Logistics is South Africa’s leader in Wine and Art Logistics as well as climate controlled storage and exhibition services. Motti has worked alongside the Challenge since its earliest days and is a key figure in South African wine export and logistics services.

Alistair Dunn

Head Steward

Alistair is our Head Steward for both the Global Fine Wine Challenge and the Australian & New Zealand Boutique Wine Show. Alistair has been a part of the support team for almost 5 years now, and we don’t know what we’d do without him.

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